International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances: Joint Statement by Odhikar and AFAD

Dhaka/Manila, 30 August 2019: The International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances is observed globally on 30 August every year and this gives us the opportunity to remember the numbers of people who were disappeared due to armed conflict, war, occupation, xenophobia, authoritarianism and political turmoil; and to show solidarity with the victim-families. While commemorating this day, Odhikar and AFAD remember the victims of enforced disappearance and respect the struggles of the families of the disappeared persons around the world.

Bangladesh: Human rights groups urge government to implement recommendations on torture and other abuses after damning UN review

14 August 2019: Following serious concerns expressed by the UN Committee against Torture (CAT) about torture in Bangladesh, seven human rights organizations call on the Bangladeshi government to recognize the magnitude of the problem and address and implement the nearly 90 recommendations made by the UN body.

Press statement AWC's concern over recent development in Kashmir

Accountability Watch Committee (AWC) expresses its serious concerns over the recent acts of the Indian government to transform the federal status of the northwestern state of Kashmir into the Union Territory in contravention to the Article 370 of the Indian Constitution. Established during the princely state’s accession into the Indian state approximately 70 years ago, this Article guarantees some special privileges to the people of Kashmir.

Statement of abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution of India

Statement: SOUTH ASIA FORUM FOR HUMAN RIGHTS (SAFHR)

Article 370 has been abrogated by a Presidential order and with it democratic India’s colossal betrayal of 13 million of its citizens. The historic state of Jammu and Kashmir has been annihilated. The RSS, BJP and the Hindu right wing parties and organisations have been continuously calling for the abrogation of Article 370. Hindu right wing nationalists have called this move of the government as the “final solution”. Clearly it is not as evinced by the fact that 8,000 paramilitary troops were being airlifted to the Kashmir valley as the Home Minister announced the abrogation of Article 370. Already 35,000 additional troops have been sent to Kashmir over the past three days. This is in addition to more than half a million army men and para-military forces of the Indian state already deployed in Kashmir.